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Sky News AU
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Former Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe slammed as 'a disgrace' to Australia after 'egregiously' flipping off Buckingham Palace in provocative social media post
Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe has caused fresh controversy after sharing photos of herself making a rude gesture outside Buckingham Palace. The 51-year-old former Greens senator posted several images to social media on Friday showing her standing outside the gates of the royal residence, holding the Aboriginal flag and raising her middle finger. She also wore a "Blak Sovereign Movement" T-shirt. "Dropped by to collect all the stuff this lot stole, but Charlie wasn't in," she captioned the post. It's understood Thorpe, a proud Gunnai, Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung woman, was in London this week to attend a conference. Her post quickly drew mixed reactions, with some critics questioning whether her trip was taxpayer-funded. "Who paid for your trip?" one user asked, while another wrote: "Do you know you don't speak for Australia. We actually can't stand you, I personally look forward to your term ending in the Senate!" Others praised Thorpe's actions, calling her "Queen" and applauding the gesture. "The only Queen I'll ever recognise!" one user commented. On Sunday, the stunt was blasted by News Corp columnist and Sky News contributor Angela Mollard during The Royal Report. "She's in England at the moment, she's gone to Buckingham Palace, and outside of it, she's held up a flag, and she's egregiously put up the middle finger to the King," Mollard told host Caroline Di Russo. "She is a disgrace to this country, honestly." Mollard said she had "done a deep dive" to determine whether the Melbourne-based politician was in the UK on any official business. "Of course she has the right, like anybody has, for freedom of speech," she said. "But if she's there for any meeting, any tax-paid funded part of that trip- I'm presuming it's a private trip- then she needs to be hauled over the coals for this." Mollard also referenced Thorpe's previous clash with King Charles III during his visit to Australia with Queen Camilla last year, when Thorpe interrupted a reception at Parliament House, shouting: "You are not our king. You are not sovereign." Just moments before, the 76-year-old monarch had delivered a speech praising Australia. Thorpe was removed from the event by security and later censured by the Australian parliament in a 46 to 12 vote condemning her conduct as "disruptive and disrespectful". Reflecting on that moment, Mollard said: "Last year when that happened in parliament, I was on air all day in the UK doing television and radio crosses because the Northern Hemisphere could not believe we would have someone of that note in a public setting like that screaming at the King." She added that Thorpe's latest stunt may only strengthen public support for the royal family. "So every time she does something like this, it drives the populous to think, 'Well, she's nuts, and actually, we quite like the royal family'- they do lots of service, King Charles has been there for 76 years, he's coping with cancer and he still turns up for multiple things during the week. "She's the one who looks silly." Di Russo added that the "wild irony" was that Thorpe had to pledge allegiance to the King in order to become a senator. has contacted Senator Thorpe for further comment.
Sky News AU
02-06-2025
- Automotive
- Sky News AU
King Charles III receives 'very expensive' ultra-luxury Rolls-Royce Cullinan Series II from King of Bahrain, the same model favoured by A-List celebrities
What do King Charles and Kylie Jenner have in common? They're both the very happy owners of near-million-dollar Rolls-Royces. The 76-year-old monarch was gifted a Rolls-Royce Cullinan Series II, worth a cool $895,000 plus on-road costs (according to The Australian Financial Review) by King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa of Bahrain, just before his coronation on May 6, 2023. The flashy SUV, favoured by A-List celebrities such as Kylie Jenner and Mike Tyson, was revealed in a newly released record of official gifts published by Buckingham Palace. The Cullinan Series II, which runs on both petrol and biofuel, is now part of the royal fleet and is expected to be used for official duties, though it hasn't yet been spotted in public with any royals aboard. In an appearance on The Royal Report, Sky News contributor Louise Roberts described the gift as "very interesting". "It's a gigantic vehicle, very, very expensive as well," Roberts said, noting the model is "a favourite of the Kardashians". An official coronation gift list released by Buckingham Palace reveals the lavish SUV wasn't the only offering from the Bahraini King, who also gave Charles a decorative clock. Other gifts received by the King for his May 2023 coronation span the globe and range from deeply symbolic to historically significant. Amazonian Indigenous Leaders presented him with a feather crown, two beaded chest pieces, carved staffs, and a tobacco bowl and inhaler. From New Zealand, Kiingi Tuheitia sent a Greenstone Mere carved specially for the coronation. Australia contributed with a national gift towards the conservation of the critically endangered Western Ground Parrot. US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden gave the King a leather folder containing correspondence between Queen Elizabeth II and President Eisenhower, along with a framed photo of Marine One landing at Windsor. And before his untimely death in April, Pope Francis presented King Charles with a relic believed to be a piece of the True Cross, which has been incorporated into the Cross of Wales. According to the Palace's gift policy, official gifts, defined as those received in the course of royal duties or from individuals not personally known to the royals, become part of the Royal Collection and are not considered private property. These items cannot be sold or traded but may be used or displayed publicly. By contrast, personal gifts are treated like any other private inheritance and are subject to regular tax rules.
